Guanajuato

The facets of the artist, cultural manager and activist Francisco Toledo (1940-2019), as well as the themes that fascinated him, are the focus of eight exhibitions, mostly with his work, that are part of the large block of exhibitions of 52 Cervantino International Festival, which begins tomorrow with Oaxaca as a guest state.

Upon receiving the call from the University of Guanajuato (UG), whose facilities will house all of the samples, We focus on proposals that the master worked on, such as photography, design, engraving, as well as his role as a collector.explained Sara López Ellitsgaard, president of the civil association Friends of the Institute of Graphic Arts of Oaxaca (IAGO) and the Manuel Álvarez Bravo Photographic Center and daughter of the artist.

From the beginning it was proposed that the exhibitions not only be installed in the state capital, but that they be taken to spaces outside the city of Guanajuato. That resonated with us a lot because the maestro always wanted the work to be exhibited not only for those who live in the city, but also in spaces where people may not have the possibility of traveling to see them. We started with the idea of ​​seeing what exhibitions he had done that might be of interest to a broader audience.said López Ellitsgaard in an interview with The Day. An attempt was made to organize exhibitions whose themes would interest young people.

Relevant social work

According to José Osvaldo Chávez Rodríguez, director of Cultural Extension of the UG, it is a magnificent opportunity to exhibit the work of Francisco Toledo due to the great social work he carried out. He was an artist whose work was not only in creation, but in generating a critical awareness of problems. That is, that people had elements to reflect on the problems we are experiencing, such as water scarcity, transgenic corn and capitalist commercial invasion, among others. For us it is important that our students keep in mind views like that of Toledo.

The UG central building and adjacent spaces will house five of the eight exhibitions. A reduced version, for reasons of space, but with a new look, of the exhibition Lu’ Biaani: Francisco Toledo and photographywill be exhibited in the Multipurpose Gallery, while Processesfirst opened at the IAGO, will be in the Hermenegildo Bustos gallery. This one has the particularity that the frame has been removed from all the pieces so that the public can observe in detail how the artist worked the plates.

The graphic series created around the figure of the Czech writer Franz Kafka can be seen in the Tomás Chávez Morado Corridor, located in the old school of International Relations in the central building of the UG. The Atrio Gallery, which is closest to street level, will receive the poster exhibition Aesop and languages. The Museum of the University of Guanajuato, housed in an old house, will house Women and graphic arts in the Toledo collection47 pieces from a selection of Oaxacan artists, from other states of the country and international artists, which the honoree included in his collection. Another graphic exhibition, Aesop’s Fables: Francisco Toledowill go to the Necromancer House, in San Miguel de Allende.

Then there are two exhibitions related to the poster biennials that the exhibitor initiated and for which he invited artists from around the world in order to design posters around topics of great concern. Posters for food sovereignty. No to GMOs. Second International Poster Biennial Oaxaca will be exhibited at the El Copal Gallery, in the community of Copal, in Irapuato, while Posters for the water. Fourth International Poster Biennial Oaxaca It will be set up in Barrio Arriba, an emblematic area of ​​León. Chávez Rodríguez explains that both Casa Necromante and Barrio Arriba are considered universitycitiesterm to refer to an attempt to link the city with the university, not necessarily from the academic programs, although from the cultural extension.